The Watched (CSI Reilly Steel #4) by CASEY HILL Page B

profession like their own personal aphrodisiac. The patter usually went something like this: ‘I’m not just a doctor, you know. I help catch criminals. Would you like to see where I do my best work?’ The worst line she’d ever heard was from a newbie in the medical examiner’s office in San Francisco. ‘I have to warn you, when we get down there, there’ll be two naked bodies; and the corpses, of course.’
    ‘ Good evening, Dr Forrest.’ The officer at the desk greeted Daniel with respectful familiarity and Reilly had to remind herself that of course he was no longer Agent Forrest, and since leaving the FBI would have defaulted to his doctorate status.
    ‘Evening.’ Daniel’s smile was tight, forced. ‘Do you know if my son is still in the lab?’
    ‘Yes, s ir,’ the officer nodded. ‘Mr Ford’s got them all staying late tonight, even the ones not usually on call.’ He leaned forward. ‘Something bad happened, I guess.’
    Daniel nodded. ‘Yes, something bad happened.’ Quickly introducing Reilly again as an associate, he was buzzed through a nearby doorway and motioned for her to follow him.
    As they moved down the corridor toward the crime lab, Reilly felt her mind absorb the new surroundings. The hallway was well lit, the floors clean white tile. So far, so familiar.
    To her left, she saw a set of double doors with the lettering,  ‘Dr Owen Kase, Chief Medical Examiner’. A few feet further on were another set of sliding glass doors, these bearing three letters, and three words in smaller typeface.
    Daniel knocked on one of the doors and, a moment later, they slid open. Reilly followed him in, eyes scanning the crime lab in her usual thorough manner.
    The girl closest to the doors gave the two of them a dazzling smile and Reilly immediately knew that the redhead wasn’t flirting; she was just one of those shiny, happy people who would’ve been grinning on the Titanic , talking about how excited she was for the opportunity to go for a swim.
    She sincerely hoped the young woman was good at her job because people with her personality usually didn’t do well in these types of circumstances. Then she checked herself, immediately reminded of Lucy, a GFU colleague back in Dublin, who was of a similar cheery disposition – or at least she had been until recently.
    So she really should keep an open mind. Judging by the instruments in front of the young technician, the girl was analyzing dirt and other particulates, nothing particularly interesting.
    The equipment was good, Reilly noted, some of it more up to date than the lab back in Dublin, some less so. Unlike the GFU one, though, the mass spectrometer looked absolute state of the art and she curled her fingers into fists, suppressing the urge to touch it. Like many women, she did like shiny things.
    ‘Dad?’ Todd’s surprised voice caught Reilly’s attention. ‘What are you doing here?’
    Whoah . . . Todd had grown up, Reilly thought, and then had to smile at her foolishness. Of course he’d changed. Almost a decade had passed since the last time she’d seen Daniel’s son.
    It wasn’t that he necessarily looked older though, she realized, amending her original impression – more that his eyes looked tired, more world-weary.
    The rest of him looked the same. Same face that had always been too pretty for a guy. Same ebony curls that made her want to run her fingers through them. Not because of any type of attraction, but more because they were there. Those curls just had that shiny texture that made everyone want to know if they were as soft as they looked. Kind of like a cat.
    ‘The famous Reilly Steel.’ Todd’s eyes changed, a grin curving his lips upward. ‘Steel by name, steel by nature. Dad mentioned he was having a house guest.’
    ‘ Todd,’ she said, extending a hand. ‘How have you been? I was so sorry to hear about your—’
    ‘So Dad’s got his prize pupil running interference already?’ he muttered darkly. ‘That